AT&T Inc. will start selling the previous-generation iPhone — the iPhone 3GS — for $49 starting Friday to customers who buy the smart phone with a two-year service contract and data plan. AT&T said it will include iPhone 3GS devices sold through AT&T and Apple. Get the full story »
Filed under: Cell phones
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Motorola unveils tablet, ‘most powerful’ phone
The world’s most powerful smart phone.
Such a claim is a bold one, but Motorola Mobility is making it at the Consumer Electronics Show, the annual industry confab where companies try to one-up each other with the newest technology and flashiest product releases. Get the full story »
Motorola’s successors see shares rise after spinoff
Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions began trading separately on Tuesday, the final step in Motorola’s two-and-half-year process in becoming two independent companies.
Motorola’s longtime ticker symbol, MOT, was retired on Tuesday as Schaumburg-based Motorola Inc. began trading under its new name, Motorola Solutions, with the ticker MSI. Motorola Mobility, which was spun off as a new company, trades under the ticker MMI.
Shares of Motorola Mobility, which includes the smartphone and TV set-top business, closed 9.5 percent higher at $33.12. Shares of Motorola Solutions Inc , which targets businesses with products like barcode scanners, closed up $2.46, or 7.6 percent, at $39.77.
iPhone alarm glitch to be fixed today, Apple says
(Reuters)
A glitch with Apple Inc.’s iPhone alarm gave some users a late start to the new year. The alarm application on the smartphone failed to work for alarms that were set for one-time use only — as opposed to recurring — on the first two days of 2011, triggering complaints of oversleeping.
A spokeswoman for Apple acknowledged the issue, saying that “customers can set recurring alarms for those dates and all alarms will work properly beginning Jan. 3.”
Apple declined to comment further about the exact nature of the glitch, but some Internet blogs said the problem was primarily affecting the iPhone 4 and older models that were updated with the latest software. Indeed, some iPhone users on Twitter boasted that their alarm clocks were working just fine. Get the full story »
Virus attacks Android phones in China
A powerful virus targeting smart phones in China running Google Inc’s Android operating system may represent the most sophisticated bug to target mobile devices to date, security researchers said on Thursday. Get the full story »
Skype adding Wi-Fi, 3G video calling to iPhone app
A new version of the free iPhone app for Skype SA will let users make and receive video calls. Users of the Internet calling and messaging service will be able to use both Wi-Fi and AT&T Inc.’s 3G cellular network. FaceTime software, which comes with iPhones, works only with Wi-Fi. Get the full story »
Dec. 29, 2010 at 1:10 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Chicago executives, Commercial real estate, Real estate, Telecommunications Motorola Mobility not moving HQ to Chicago
From Crain’s Chicago Business | Motorola Mobility, Motorola’s cell phone unit, reportedly has ruled out moving its headquarters to downtown Chicago. The company, which will split from the emergency-radio business Jan. 4, would keep its headquarters at its existing campus in Libertyville if it chooses to stay in Illinois, says a person familiar with the search. Get the full story>>
AT&T plans to expand Wi-Fi hotzones program
AT&T Inc. plans to expand its Wi-Fi hotzone in Times Square and add new coverage areas in New York and San Francisco, after a strong response to its pilot program.
The company initially plans to expand the Times Square Wi-Fi hotzone and add new ones near Rockefeller Center and St. Patrick’s Cathedral in midtown Manhattan. It also is planning a new hotzone for the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco. The program is intended to supplement mobile broadband in urban areas with consistently high usage
AT&T, the exclusive carrier of Apple Inc.’s iPhone in the U.S., has been the subject of criticism over the quality of its service in places like New York City and San Francisco. Get the full story »
Dec. 22, 2010 at 7:50 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Consumer electronics, International, M&A, Wireless Dover buys Sound Solutions for $855M
Downers Grove-based Dover Corp. has reached an $855 million deal to acquire NXP Semiconductors NV’s Sound Solutions business, which makes speaker and receiver components for the mobile handset market. Get the full story »
Verizon to sell Motorola 4G phone
Verizon Wireless will distribute a smartphone made by Motorola Inc. to run on its new 4G network, the carrier’s chief operating officer, John Stratton, said in an interview Tuesday. The comments mark the first time the carrier has identified a handset maker for the closely watched launch and represent an important vote of confidence in Motorola. Get the full story »
Smartphone rivalry plays out in patent suits
Competition among smart phone makers is heating up at retail, in advertising and, increasingly, in the courtroom as handset and software makers wield patent lawsuits to protect their turf and slow down their rivals.
Though Apple’s iPhone changed the categoryin 2007 and still leads the market, there are a flood of rivals and copy cats making it difficult for smart phone makers to stand out to consumers or persuade them to pay more for their devices.
In turn, that has prompted a slew of patent disputes over all aspects of basic phone use, from the way a user swipes a touch screen to perform an action to the method a phone uses to extend battery life. Nokia is suing Apple, Apple is suing HTC, Microsoft is suing Motorola and more. Get the full story »
Dec. 20, 2010 at 1:50 p.m.
Filed under: Cell phones, Computers, Entertainment, Telecommunications, Wireless ‘Smurfs’ Village’ app adds warnings of real costs
The publisher of the popular “The Smurfs’ Village” game for the iPhone and iPad has added a warning that virtual items such as “Smurfberries” cost real money – as much as $100 with just two taps on the screen.
An Associated Press story this month revealed how easy it is for kids to buy such virtual items and have them billed to their parents without their knowledge. Like many other free games, “Smurfs’ Village” makes money by selling the virtual goods to advance play. Get the full story »
Qualcomm deal to give AT&T wider 4G access
AT&T Inc. plans to buy wireless spectrum from Qualcomm Inc. for $1.93 billion and boost its 4G network, aiming to counter criticism over iPhone service quality and a threat from rivals such as Verizon Wireless.
AT&T is the sole U.S. carrier for Apple Inc.’s iPhone, but smaller rivals including Sprint Nextel and Clearwire Corp. have been adopting 4G, a new wireless standard that enables better Internet access including video. Get the full story »
Dec. 16, 2010 at 4:26 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Earnings, Technology, Telecommunications, Wireless RIM sees 3Q profits rise 45% on Torch strength
Research In Motion reported results that mostly beat expectations Thursday, and the BlackBerry maker forecast strong profits for the current quarter, pushing its shares higher in after-hours trade.
RIM said net profit jumped 45 percent in its third quarter, which ended Nov. 27. It said results were boosted by strong sales of its flagship Torch smartphone, a new product that combines a touch screen like Apple’s iPhone with RIM’s trademark mini keyboard. Get the full story »
